Operating Systems – Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

1. 1. What is an operating system?

   • A. A type of hardware
   • B. A set of software that manages computer hardware and software resources
   • C. A programming language
   • D. A network protocol

2. 2. Which of the following is a primary function of an operating system?

   • A. Managing hardware resources
   • B. Compiling code
   • C. Designing databases
   • D. Networking

3. 3. What is a kernel?

   • A. The outermost layer of an OS
   • B. The core component of an OS that manages the system's resources
   • C. A user interface for the OS
   • D. A system utility

4. 4. What is a process?

   • A. A program in execution
   • B. A piece of hardware
   • C. A system call
   • D. A thread

5. 5. What is a thread?

   • A. A heavyweight process
   • B. A lightweight subprocess that can run concurrently within a process
   • C. A kernel module
   • D. A system library

6. 6. What is process scheduling?

   • A. The act of managing the execution of processes
   • B. The process of creating new processes
   • C. The process of terminating processes
   • D. The process of allocating memory to processes

7. 7. Which of the following is a process scheduling algorithm?

   • A. Shortest Job First
   • B. Bubble Sort
   • C. Binary Search
   • D. Depth-First Search

8. 8. What is First-Come, First-Served (FCFS) scheduling?

   • A. Processes are executed in the order they arrive
   • B. Processes with the shortest burst time are executed first
   • C. Processes with the highest priority are executed first
   • D. Processes are given a fixed time quantum

9. 9. What is Shortest Job First (SJF) scheduling?

   • A. Processes are executed in the order they arrive
   • B. Processes with the shortest burst time are executed first
   • C. Processes with the highest priority are executed first
   • D. Processes are given a fixed time quantum

10. 10. What is Priority Scheduling?

    • A. Processes are executed in the order they arrive
    • B. Processes with the shortest burst time are executed first
    • C. Processes are executed based on their assigned priority
    • D. Processes are given a fixed time quantum

11. 11. What is Round Robin scheduling?

    • A. Processes are executed in the order they arrive
    • B. Processes with the shortest burst time are executed first
    • C. Processes are executed based on their priority
    • D. Each process gets a small unit of CPU time (time quantum)

12. 12. What is deadlock?

    • A. A situation where multiple processes are blocked indefinitely
    • B. each waiting for a resource held by another
    • C. A situation where a process terminates abnormally
    • D. A situation where the CPU is idle